German news magazine Der Spiegel reported that one of its reporters and editors, Claas Relotius, falsified his articles and distorted facts in his stories for years.
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 20th December, 2018) German news magazine Der Spiegel reported that one of its reporters and editors, Claas Relotius, falsified his articles and distorted facts in his stories for years.
The outlet said that Relotius' colleague, Juan Moreno, was the first to be distrustful of the reporter and to report to Der Spiegel about his suspicions after the two journalists had worked together for an article on a US patrol group operating along the Mexican border, which was published in November.
According to the magazine, Relotius initially denied his guilt but subsequently admitted it late last week. Der Spiegel added he made up entire passages in a number of his articles. Since 2011, the reporter wrote around 60 articles for the magazine and its online version and reportedly admitted that at least 14 of them were at least partially fabricated.
The magazine suggested that Relotius deceived his colleagues and readers intentionally, not only distorting facts and making up dialogues and quotes but also inventing characters for his articles.
"Claas Relotius committed his deception intentionally, methodically and with criminal intent. For example, he included individuals in his stories who he had never met or spoken to, telling their stories or quoting them," Der Spiegel said in a press release, commenting on the case.
Relotius reportedly resigned after having confessed to the fraud.
The made-up stories published by the journalist included articles about a Yemeni prisoner in Guantanamo Bay and football star Colin Kaepernick, according to reports.
Relotius initially worked for Der Spiegel as a freelancer but began working as the magazine's editor around 18 months ago. Der Spiegel noted that the journalist also worked for other media outlets in German and abroad, including the Financial Times Deutschland, Suddeutsche Zeitung Magazin, Zeit Online and the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung.
The outlet noted that Relotius' features had been nominated and won major journalism awards.
The magazine said it would set up a commission to investigate into the falsification of articles and would report about its findings in the case.
Relotius' stories would remain unaltered in the archive until the allegations are clarified.
